Question Of The Week: Which Bands Should Have Another Record Out By Now?

It's been more than 20 years since My Bloody Valentine put out the band's now legendary Loveless album. Frontman Kevin Shields is promising a followup by the end of the year.
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This week's announcement that My Bloody Valentine will finally put out a followup to the band's truly amazing Loveless album — more than 20 years later — got us thinking: What other bands really ought to have another record out by now?

Leave your picks in the comments section. Here are mine:

1. Postal Service: I'm guessing this one would top many people's lists. The band's 2003 release Give Up (which recently went platinum) struck the perfect tone for a nation still very much disjointed and jittery over terrorist attacks, war, sniper shootings, anthrax, a post-dot com crash and any number of other head-spinning worries. Despite the album's title, the songs were oddly calming — a comforting companion as everyone retreated to their bedrooms. I hate to say it, but you should probably give up (see what I did there?) hope that Postal Service will ever release another album.

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2. Neutral Milk Hotel: This one's another gimme. In a few months it will have officially been 15 years since In The Aeroplane Over The Sea came out, and before last year's solo acoustic tour by frontman Jeff Mangum (and a deluxe box set of rarities), we'd barely heard a peep from this band. Aeroplane was/is just a staggering record, masterfully written and produced, with urgency and poetry, soul and grit. I actually believe Neutral Milk Hotel will eventually put out another record.

3. Damien Rice: When he put out O in 2002, I remember thinking this guy was really going to "be something." What a breathtakingly beautiful record. Then the years past and we didn't hear from him. He did release a record called 9 in 2006, but I've read he really didn't want to, that his label pressured him to put out another record, and that he thought half the songs on 9 weren't very good. It's an easy conclusion to draw, and maybe not at all accurate, but you've gotta believe that artists like Rice are just paralyzed by the pressure to live up to their own greatness. If that's true, then please, genius artists like Rice, don't worry. We love you.

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4. The Glands: This isn't an obvious choice since most people have never heard of The Glands. But they put out two of my all-time-favorite albums — Double Thriller in 1998, and a self-titled record in 2000 — filling me with no end of excitement about what else was to come. But after more than a decade, the world is still waiting for that next record (the world is not waiting for the next record). I keep hearing rumors that one is coming but I'm not hopeful. Double Thriller and The Glands are just flawless, arty rock records: A little dark and moody, but chill, beautifully melodic and transporting.

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5. Ty Segall: It's been just over a month since he released his last album, Twins. What gives, Ty? Before that he released two other records in April and June. I don't want to be overly critical, but the word "disappointment" comes to mind. I guess I just want Ty to think long and hard about his L.O.E. (that's "level of effort") and whether music is really something he wants to pursue.

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